Individual metering and submetering for cooling application

In 2012 the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) has set mandatory installation of individual metering and submetering systems for accounting thermal energy consumption in buildings where centralized heating/cooling sources are present, when technically feasible and cost efficient. As a consequence, direct thermal energy meters or indirect heat accounting systems have spread widely in residential buildings, for metering and sub-metering in space heating applications. On the other hand, individual metering of thermal energy in space cooling is a difficult task, due to the very different types of cooling systems and to the lack of technical and legal metrology regulation. In this paper possible solutions available for direct metering and submetering of different types of centralized cooling systems are discussed. Indeed, for direct metering application, the cooling fluid flow metering is a particularly crucial issue due to small pipe diameters and different fluid properties. Thus, the authors carried out an experimental comparison between a Coriolis flow-meter and an ultrasonic clamp-on flow-meter in the cooling fluid circuit of a direct expansion system. Tests have been performed at different operative temperature differences between flow and return, showing relative errors within ± 10%

Expanded Total Equivalent Warming Impact analysis on experimental standalone fresh-food refrigerator

The stand-alone refrigerators for fresh food storage represent a large part of supermarket refrigeration equip-ment. In these devices, the usage of refrigerants with low Global Warming Potential allows the mitigation of the direct emissions due to refrigerant leakages. In contrast, the indirect emissions in these components are highly dependent on the refrigerant charge, leakage, and equivalent emission factors related to the electricity pro-duction mix. The most used index to evaluate the environmental impact of refrigerators is the Total Equivalent Warming Impact. Despite that this index presents limits on the fixed evaluation of many parameters such as refrigerant charge, electricity consumption and, electricity emission factor. Otherwise in this study, an accurate evaluation of refrigerators emissions has been realised by using the innovative Expanded Total Equivalent Warming Impact method to an experimental stand-alone refrigerator by using a dynamic approach to evaluate direct and indirect contributions. The environmental analysis considers four different refrigerants and four different countries of location. The results show that the indirect emissions due to electricity consumption cover the highest share of emissions. In addition, the operating years affected by low refrigerant charges are respon-sible for emissions by greater than 25% compared to other ones. The hourly equivalent emissions due to elec-tricity consumption in countries characterized by an electricity generation mix mainly based on renewable and/ or nuclear plants show an indirect environmental impact up to 5 times lower than countries with a natural gas -based electricity production mix. The study also defines new strategies to reduce the environmental impact of the stand-alone refrigerator such as the use of photovoltaic systems combined with this technology or earlier maintenance processes that could determine an equivalent emission saving of up to 38%

Lentiviral-mediated administration of IL-25 in the CNS induces alternative activation of microglia

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Obesity in Prader–Willi syndrome: physiopathological mechanisms, nutritional and pharmacological approaches

Prader–Willi syndrome (PWS) is a genetic disorder caused by the lack of expression of genes on the paternally inherited chromosome 15q11.2-q13 region. The three main genetic subtypes are represented by paternal 15q11-q13 deletion, maternal uniparental disomy 15, and imprinting defect. Clinical picture of PWS changes across life stages. The main clinical characteristics are represented by short stature, developmental delay, cognitive disability and behavioral diseases. Hypotonia and poor suck resulting in failure to thrive are typical of infancy. As the subjects with PWS age, clinical manifestations such as hyperphagia, temperature instability, high pain threshold, hypersomnia and multiple endocrine abnormalities including growth hormone and thyroid-stimulating hormone deficiencies, hypogonadism and central adrenal insufficiency due to hypothalamic dysfunction occur. Obesity and its complications are the most common causes of morbidity and mortality in PWS. Several mechanisms for the aetiology of obesity in PWS have been hypothesized, which include aberration in hypothalamic pathways of satiety control resulting in hyperphagia, disruption in hormones regulating appetite and satiety and reduced energy expenditure. However, despite the advancement in the research field of the genetic basis of obesity in PWS, there are contradictory data on the management. Although it is mandatory to adopt obesity strategy prevention from infancy, there is promising evidence regarding the management of obesity in adulthood with current obesity drugs along with lifestyle interventions, although the data are limited. Therefore, the current manuscript provides a review of the current evidence on obesity and PWS, covering physiopathological aspects, obesity-related complications and conservative management

Randomised trial comparing biweekly oxaliplatin plus oral capecitabine versus oxaliplatin plus i.v. bolus fluorouracil/leucovorin in metastatic colorectal cancer patients: results of the Southern Italy Cooperative Oncology study 0401

Oxaliplatin combined with either fluorouracil/leucovorin (OXAFAFU) or capecitabine (OXXEL) has a demonstrated activity in metastatic colorectal cancer patients. We aimed at comparing these two regimens in terms of response rate (RR), safety, progression-free survival (PFS), and quality of life (QoL) of patients

Sorafenib plus long-acting octreotide in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Preliminary results of a multicenter ongoing study

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Efficacy of the combination of cisplatin with either gemcitabine and vinorelbine or gemcitabine and paclitaxel in the treatment of locally advanced or metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer: a phase III randomised trial of the Southern Italy Cooperative Oncology Group (SICOG 0101)

Triplet regimens were occasionally reported to produce a higher response rate (RR) than doublets in locally advanced or metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This trial was conducted to assess (i) whether the addition of cisplatin (CDDP) to either gemcitabine (GEM) and vinorelbine (VNR) or GEM and paclitaxel (PTX) significantly prolongs overall survival (OS) and (ii) to compare the toxicity of PTX-containing and VNR-containing combinations

A MoU to create a COnsortium of Academics from Universities promoting the use of THORrium (COAUTHOR)

Nuclear Energy, primarily to produce electricity and other use, and the enveloping Nuclear Technology, as inherited from the XX Century, constitutes a controversial issue for political and economic reasons. On the one hand, the energy source is promoted in several Countries and an unavoidable mean to ensure growth for the human civilization ad suitable living standard with reduced or no impact upon the environment, on the other hand it is abandoned or going to be abandoned in other Countries which did benefit of stable economic growth. Thorium is an emblem for such a situation: huge reserves are available all over the world (primarily India, Turkey, and Brazil, but not only) and its technological worth for exploitation in current generation of thermal fission reactors is demonstrated, on the other hand no industrial use is ongoing or planned for the near future (with an exception constituted by situation in India). Moreover, research on thorium utilization in nuclear reactors and associated fuel cycles has been of academic interest for many researchers around the world. These researches are being conducted to increase the natural resource utilization, reduces the radiotoxicity, and other criteria of sustainability, by using thorium in the present time advanced reactors (Generation III), as well for the future Generation IV, mainly in Molten Salt Reactors (MSR) and in hybrid fusion/ accelerators driven system. Here we are going to describe a MoU signed by the authors to promote the utilization of thorium as nuclear fuel, and shortly describe the research activities conducted by the MoU partners